The Photon operating system must implement address space layout randomization (ASLR) to protect its memory from unauthorized code execution.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-256535	PHTN-30-000065	SV-256535r887279_rule		Medium

Description
ASLR makes it more difficult for an attacker to predict the location of attack code they have introduced into a process's address space during an attempt at exploitation. ASLR also makes it more difficult for an attacker to know the location of existing code to repurpose it using return-oriented programming (ROP) techniques.

STIG	Date
VMware vSphere 7.0 vCenter Appliance Photon OS Security Technical Implementation Guide	2023-12-01

Details

Check Text ( C-60210r887277_chk )
At the command line, run the following command: # cat /proc/sys/kernel/randomize_va_space If the value of "randomize_va_space" is not "2", this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-60153r887278_fix)
Navigate to and open: /etc/sysctl.d/50-security-hardening.conf Ensure the "randomize_va_space" is uncommented and set to the following: kernel.randomize_va_space=2 At the command line, run the following command: # sysctl --system